Fibroids and weight gain usually go hand in hand. Fibroids are tissue. As they grow, they increase your overall body weight, just as adding any extra tissue to your body would. Individual fibroids can grow to the size of a full-term baby, changing body proportions the same way a baby would. There have been multiple incidences of fibroids growing up to twenty pounds, which is a lot of extra tissue on the midsection.
If uncontrolled weight gain is a concern, put non-surgical Uterine Fibroid Embolization (UFE) on your radar. Uterine Fibroid Embolization shrinks fibroids. When fibroids get smaller, they weigh less and stop causing a distended abdomen. Shrinking your fibroids non-surgically will make a profound difference in how you look. How you feel.
Don’t let fibroids cause unwanted weight gain and body changes. Call us and learn about this non-surgical treatment option.
How Do Fibroids Cause Weight Gain?
The more a fibroid grows, the more weight it adds to the body. As the scale registers additional pounds in fibroid weight, you are also likely to notice an increase in fibroid symptoms. Pain, pressure, menstrual volume, and duration can skyrocket. Larger fibroids may cause a highly visible protrusion. It’s the kind of body change no amount of exercise or dieting will reduce.
An increase in symptoms usually causes a decrease in the desire to exercise. Severe pain or pressure can make movement difficult. Excessive bleeding is just awkward and anxiety-producing.
Uncertainty about what your body will do, means you do less. Less exercise means lowered chances to burn off calories, which leads to body fat.
Fibroids also often cause fatigue from anemia caused by heavy bleeding. Less energy means activity levels drop even further. Now you are dealing with weight gain, not just from fibroids, but from restrictions to movement, fear of exercise, lack of energy.
Reasons for Sudden Fibroid Growth
Fibroids that have been inactive, small, and causing zero symptoms can change very quickly. Certain triggers and certain times of life can initiate rapid fibroid growth. The changes to your health and wellbeing can be aggressive.
Here are a few of the known reasons that fibroids suddenly begin to grow.
- Elevated levels of estrogen and progesterone
- Pregnancy – because the above hormone levels increase during that time
- Diet changes
Is My Weight Gain from Fibroids?
If you are experiencing weight gain, it could be for a number of reasons. The cause may be fibroids. It may be a change in eating or exercise habits. It may be something else entirely.
Here’s a quick checklist for weight gain in general versus fibroid-related weight gain.
Typical Causes of General Weight Gain
- Not eating as well as you usually do.
- Eating more frequently than usual
- Significant drops or lack of exercise or activity levels
- Frequently eating high-sodium meals that are causing water retention (bloating)
- Pregnancy
Likely Fibroid Weight Gain Causes:
- Unexplained weight gain even after you change your diet to reduce caloric consumption
- Unexplained weight gain even after you increase exercising
- An unexplained weight that adds volume and circumference to the abdominal area when you aren’t pregnant
Treating Fibroid Weight Gain Non-Surgically
A procedure called Uterine Fibroid Embolization (UFE) puts an end to fibroid issues without the drawbacks of traditional fibroid surgery. UFE quick. It’s low trauma to the body. It has a very fast recovery time. And UFE doesn’t ‘wound’ the uterus the way a surgery will.
By targeting fibroid blood supply, UFE eliminates what fibroids need to grow. Without blood, fibroids starve and shrink. As they shrink, the extra weight they cause shrinks. Fatigue disappears. Symptoms of pain, pressure, and excessive bleeding end.
An additional benefit of embolization is that it preserves fertility. Embolization does not interfere with the ability to conceive, carry or deliver a child. Hysterectomy totally erases this option. Fibroid surgeries like myomectomy may keep fertility options open, but only until fibroids grow back. Roughly 50% of all fibroid surgeries wind up with fibroid regrowth. Sometimes, within a few months.
Will I Get My Flat Stomach Back After UFE?
Patients often ask about having a flat stomach after their UFE. After UFE, fibroid-related weight gain starts to come off. For women with large fibroids and/or multiple fibroids, this can mean a significant body change.
As you move out from under a fibroid issue, you’ll recover your drive and energy. You’ll be free of constant, debilitating discomfort. And adding exercise to your daily routine will be something enjoyable instead of fearful.
Weight loss after embolization is just easier. It’s hard to notice positive body changes when your abdominal area is bloated and distended. And the life limits imposed by fibroids may mean you’ve been sticking close to home, as opposed to out there and active. Inactivity can certainly pile on the pounds.
While embolization addresses weight loss from fibroids by shrinking them, additional weight loss will be influenced by diet and exercise habits. The important factor is patience and dedication. Every patient is different. Generally speaking, maximum shrinkage after UFE takes about six months. But the freedom you’ll have from heavy periods, pelvic pressure, fibroid pain happens immediately after UFE. And you’ll be able to re-engage with an active lifestyle quickly, much faster than if you had surgery.
Minimize Weight Gain By Treating Fibroids
We recommend seeking treatment as soon as you learn your uterine fibroids have begun to grow. The longer you wait, the more chance fibroids have to get big, complicate life, affect body shape. You can avoid fibroid-related weight by addressing fibroids early.
A non-surgical approach, like UFE, means you take care of the problem quickly, safely with minimal downtime. There’s a lot less interruption to your life than with surgery. Resuming exercise happens much faster when you aren’t spending weeks healing, rehabing, recovering.
Remember, fibroids can’t grow or grow back without a blood supply. After UFE, you will be free of them forever. Half of all fibroid surgeries wind up in fibroid regrowth. Meaning more surgeries. More cost. More recovery.
Schedule A Consultation Today.
Eliminate fibroid symptoms and weight gain. Ensure none of these issues ever comes back. Call us today and get started. Learn how Uterine Fibroid Embolization not only safely and effectively treats fibroids but how it allows women to reclaim their bodies faster, simpler, smarter.
Embolization Helped Sonia Get Her Confidence Back
As a small woman Sonia couldn’t understand why she could never get rid of her “pooch.” She soon learned it was due to fibroids. After having Embolization, Sonia was able to get her confidence back and feel great in a two piece bathing suit!
